Please use this thread to discuss your thoughts, feelings, and any reports, blogs, images, YouTube videos, etc., you'd like to share in memory of Michael Jackson.

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Thanks to everyone who shared their thoughts, memories and feelings in the previous installment of this thread. Please continue to share those comments here.

im glad any plans to bury him at neverland was axed, he said out his own mouth he would never call that his home again and he felt it was contaminated, it would have been very disrespectful to make that his final resting place.

im glad any plans to bury him at neverland was axed, he said out his own mouth he would never call that his home again and he felt it was contaminated, it would have been very disrespectful to make that his final resting place.

true...that, and there'd be all sorts of reports of seeing his ghost there or something.

also, as a heads-up: peanut butter wolf from stones throw records did a video tribute to michael over on the stones throw website. i'd posted this link in one of the first 3 threads and it just had the first part of the tribute up at the time...now, all 3 parts of it are up and ready for view. check it out:

I was shocked about his will, but not suprised. They have a long history together.

Michael and Diana singing "Ease on down the Road"

Diana Ross sits on Michael Jackson's lap

That's a great honor for someone to place their children in your car.

The message you are about to hear are not meant for transmission. Should ONLY be accessed in the privacy of your mind. Words are so intense so if you dare to listen.Take off your clothes and meet me between the lines.

The hit-making producer behind the King of Pop's rise discusses Jackson's life, death, and love of chemical peels

By Jeff Gordinier

Q: How have you been holding up since Michael Jackson's death?
A: Oh, man. It's surrealistic. I went to Shanghai for the movie festival over there-I took Halle Berry-and then went back to Luxembourg, and in three days I lost Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and Michael. And Michael's thing is still surrealistic to me. I can't process it, man. I don't know how to process it. It's just unbelievable-him leaving before me. I can't believe it.

Q: How did you learn that he had died?
A: Well, everybody in the world called me. I got 500 e-mails. I've never seen anything like it in my life. At first they said they'd taken him to the hospital, then they said he'd had a stroke or a heart attack-it just kept going back and forth and we didn't know what was really happening. And at first I thought he was just kind of freaked out by the coming concerts, because I was in London when they announced the 50 concerts and they sold out in four hours. . . We'd see each other all the time, and I just can't believe he's not here.

Q: Have you been crying?
A: Oh, man, it's more than that. It's way more than that. It hurts my soul, man. It's just a lump down there.

Q: You were there to witness the strange evolution in Michael's appearance. Did you ever step in and saying anything about it?
A: Oh, we talked about it all the time. But he'd come up with, "Man, I promise you I have this disease," and so forth, and "I have a blister on my lungs," and all that kind of b.s. It's hard, because Michael's a Virgo, man-he's very set in his ways. You can't talk him out of it. Chemical peels and all that stuff.

Q: Did you believe him about the disease?
A: I don't believe in any of that bullshit, no. No. Never. I've been around junkies and stuff all my life. I've heard every excuse. It's like smokers-"I only smoke when I drink" and all that stuff. But it's bullshit. You're justifying something that's destructive to your existence. It's crazy. I mean, I came up with Ray Charles, man. You know, nobody gonna pull no wool over my eyes. He did heroin 20 years! Come on. And black coffee and gin for 40 years. But when he called me to come over to see him when he was in the hospital on his way out, man, he had emphysema, hepatitis C, cirrhosis of the liver, and five malignant tumors. Please, man! I've been around this all my life. So it's hard for somebody to pull the wool over my eyes. But when somebody's hell-bent on it, you can't stop 'em.

Q: But it must've been so disturbing to see Michael's face turn into what it turned into.
A: It's ridiculous, man! Chemical peels and all of it. And I don't understand it. But he obviously didn't want to be black.

Q: Is that what it was?
A: Well, what do you think? You see his kids?

Q: Did you ever discuss it? Did you ever ask, "Michael, don't you want to be a black man?"
A: No, no, no, please. That's not the way you do it.

Q: But he was beautiful before?
A: Man, he was the most gorgeous guy.

Q: But he seemed to have some deep-seated issue with how he looked?
A: Well, that comes about a certain way. I'm not sure how it happens. I'm just a musician and a record producer. I'm not a psychiatrist. I don't understand all that stuff. We all got problems. But there's a great book out called Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart. Did you see that? That book says the statute of limitations has expired on all childhood traumas. Get your stuff together and get on with your life, man. Stop whinin' about what's wrong, because everybody's had a rough time, in one way or another.

Q: I've heard you say that you wanted Michael to sing "She's Out of My Life," the great pop ballad from Off the Wall, in part because you felt like he had to deal with reality.
A: I just wanted to hear him deal with a romantic relationship with a human being rather than a rat. I'm saying that facetiously, but it's true. I saw him at the Oscars very emotional about "Ben." I wanted to hear him get in touch with a real human relationship. "She's Out of My Life" was written by Tommy Bahler from a very bad ending to a marriage. So it was very real. I was saving it for Sinatra. But I gave it to Michael. And Michael cried during every take, and I left the tears in.

Q: It's interesting you mention this, because I was just watching a clip on YouTube where you're sitting on a couch with Michael and he's petting a snake the whole time.
A: Oh, I remember that. Yeah, that was Muscles.

Q: Muscles?
A: Muscles. That's a big boa constrictor he had. Muscles used to wrap around my leg in a record session and crawl across the console. I was never comfortable with that. It was a choice between that and Bubbles-you know, the chimp.

Q: Did you ever meet Bubbles?
A: Are you kidding me? He bit a hole in my daughter's hand! Rashida's hand. Rashida Jones-did you see I Love You, Man? That's my daughter. She was a little girl. And Bubbles bit her hand. Michael used to bring Muscles and Bubbles by the house all the time, you know.

Q: What did you think of that? Wasn't that a little weird?
A: I don't know, man. Everybody does his own thing. I've met every freak in the business. Everybody has their idiosyncrasies. I try not to judge it, you know. I know all women are junkies for little dogs and bags and purses. Ha ha ha ha!
Q: At root, what do you think killed Michael Jackson?
A: I don't know, man. I'm a musician. I'm not a psychiatrist. I would think that the pressure of the concerts and the debt and everything else . . . look, I've been in the hands of Nobel doctors for the last five years, in Stockholm, at the Karolinska hospital, which you can't even pay to get in. I've learned so much about the human mind and the body, and the doctors talk all the time about how you become your thoughts. It's true. With one thought it starts, you know, and if you sit there and just stay hung up on one negative thought, you will become that thought. I know that Lisa Marie Presley said that she always thought he was going to die like Elvis. You sit and think about that stuff, it'll happen to you. If you start thinking about darkness instead of light, or fear instead of love, you'll get in trouble. I really believe that.

Q: With so many people asking you about Michael Jackson, is it hard to find the private space in which to mourn his death?
A: Yes, it is. It's surrealistic. I don't know how to process it at all. Because everybody's reacting to it, and making up their own answers.

Q: You've said that you don't attend funerals anymore because you've lost so many friends. Do you plan to attend Michael Jackson's funeral?
A: No, not at all, not at all. Because it's going to be, like, 9 million people there, and it's not what I want to see.

Q: You're not going to be there?
A: No. I can't be there, anyway. I'm going to Wales the day after tomorrow, I go to Montreux, I go to Marbella, I go to the south of France. My condolences and love I've already sent to the family. But being there with 10 million people is not my idea of a tribute to somebody you were so close to-who's got a part of your soul. Our souls were joined, you know. And a piece of it goes with him.

im glad any plans to bury him at neverland was axed, he said out his own mouth he would never call that his home again and he felt it was contaminated, it would have been very disrespectful to make that his final resting place.

Yeah the nearby neighbors were NOT gonna be happy if he was buried there. They were already complaining that they didn't want another Graceland.

The message you are about to hear are not meant for transmission. Should ONLY be accessed in the privacy of your mind. Words are so intense so if you dare to listen.Take off your clothes and meet me between the lines.

Chic35, I ain't that surprised about the will although some of the speculation has been patently absurd. One newspaper even claimed that MJ would leave the Beatles publishing with Beyonce through EMI publishing. WTF!

i saw this at the huffington post and there's great debate going on there. so quincy didn't believe that mj has vitiligo; deepak choprah, a good friend to mj also, says he did as well as lupus. i suppose we'll know soon enough as i'm sure they'll mention it in the autopsy.

i think quincy comes across callous and spiteful, rather dismissive and dragging ray charles into it is weird but whatever. i suppose when he's dead and gone people will get to spew about him as well.

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Michael Jackson's memorial service will take place Tuesday morning in the Staples Center, the 20,000-seat coliseum in downtown Los Angeles where Jackson rehearsed his show the night before he died, according to a person who has been briefed by a representative of the family.

Michael Jackson was rehearsing at Los Angeles' Staples Center. His memorial will now be there.

No other details about the service, set to begin at 10 a.m. Tuesday, have been revealed.

The news comes amid the frenzy of information -- some conflicting -- that has followed the death of Jackson.

Thursday, CNN learned the family trust created by Jackson to receive all of his assets includes his mother, his children and a list of charities, according to a person with direct knowledge to the contents of the trust.

Katherine Jackson's 40 percent share would go to Michael Jackson's three children after her death, the source said.

The children -- ages 7, 11 and 12 -- will also share 40 percent of the estate's assets and the remaining 20 percent will benefits charities designated by the executors of the will, the source said.

Wednesday, a federal law enforcement official said Wednesday night that the Drug Enforcement Administration had joined Jackson's death investigation, once again fanning speculation that drugs may have been involved in the pop icon's passing.

Earlier in the day, the Jackson family said they would not hold a public or private viewing of his body at Neverland Ranch, as had been reported.

And though Jackson's will, made public Wednesday, placed his entire estate in a family trust, the document that described the trust was not filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.

"He was such an enigma in life, why would we expect him to be anything different in death?" said Antoni Devon, a Jackson fan who huddled with other music lovers at a makeshift memorial for the singer outside Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.

DEA joins investigation

Two law enforcement officials separately confirmed the DEA probe, saying agents would look at various doctors involved with Jackson, their practices and their possible sources of medicine supply.

Neither official wanted to be identified because they could not comment publicly on the matter.

Officially, a DEA spokeswoman referred questions to the Los Angeles, California, police department -- which would not confirm the involvement.

"We routinely offer assistance to any agency regarding the Federal Controlled Substance Act," said Sarah Pullen of the DEA. "However, at this time, we have nothing further to comment about the death of Michael Jackson."

Speculation about the role of drugs has been swirling since Jackson died on June 25 at his rented estate in Holmby Hills. The cause of his death, at age 50, was pending toxicology results.

'Michael Jackson: Man in the Mirror' (Replay)
CNN's Don Lemon takes an in-depth look at Michael Jackson's life and legacy. His childhood, his music, his finances, his influence. Don't miss this CNN Presents special.
Saturday and Sunday, 8 p.m. ET

see full schedule »
On Wednesday, police released a car belonging to Jackson's cardiologist, Dr. Conrad Murray. They had impounded the vehicle Friday, saying it might contain evidence -- possibly prescription medications.

Police did not say whether they found anything.

Murray's lawyers issued a statement, asking the public to reserve judgment about the cause of death until the coroner's tests are complete.

"Based on our agreement with Los Angeles investigators, we are waiting on real information to come from viable sources like the Los Angeles medical examiner's office about the death of Michael Jackson," the statement said. "We will not be responding to rumors and innuendo."

The comments were in reaction to a claim by a nutritionist who said Jackson suffered from severe bouts of insomnia and pleaded for the powerful sedative, Propofol, despite knowing its harmful effects.

"I told him this medication is not safe," said Cherilyn Lee, a registered nurse. "He said, 'I just want to get some sleep. You don't understand. I just want to be able to be knocked out and go to sleep.'"

Will nominates Jackson's mother as kids' guardian

Meanwhile, details of Jackson's will -- written on July 7, 2002 -- showed that the singer estimated his estate to be worth at least $500 million.

In it, he nominated his mother, Katherine Jackson, as the guardian of his three children.

If his 79-year-old mother is not living, "I nominate Diana Ross as guardian," Jackson stated.

Singer Ross, 65, is a lifelong friend of Jackson's.

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The will said Jackson "intentionally omitted" his former wife and the mother of his two oldest children, Debbie Rowe.

It will be up to a court to decide who gets custody of the children, ages 7, 11 and 12. Rowe has not publicly indicated whether she will challenge the Jacksons for custody.

The two men whom the will named as executors immediately filed a request to take control of the estate.

One is John Branca, who represented Jackson from 1980 until 2006 and was hired again before the singer's death. He helped acquire Jackson's music catalog, which is worth millions.

The other is music industry executive John McClain, a longtime Jackson friend who has worked with him and his sister Janet.

The men said in their filing in Los Angeles Superior Court that control of the estate would allow them to tend to Jackson's numerous outstanding debts, legal cases and business obligations.

Judge Mitchell Beckloff held an emergency hearing Wednesday morning and decided there was no urgency to replace Katherine Jackson -- whom he appointed temporary administrator earlier this week.

Another hearing has been set for Monday.

Fans crestfallen over viewing

Jackson's will did not specify where he wished to be buried.

Many of his fans had hoped they'd get a chance to pay last respects at Neverland Ranch, which Jackson purchased in 1987, filled with animals and amusement rides, and named after the fictional world in J.M. Barrie's "Peter Pan."

Planning had been under way for a motorcade to carry Jackson's body from Los Angeles to the ranch in Santa Barbara County, California, which state and local officials suggested would be difficult and costly.

A public viewing at the ranch on Friday also had been under consideration, law enforcement sources said.

But a spokesman for the family said Wednesday that no events were planned at the ranch.

"Plans are under way regarding a public memorial for Michael Jackson, and we will announce those plans shortly," said Ken Sunshine, whose public relations firm had just been hired by the Jackson family.

Despite the announcement, more than two dozen television satellite trucks lined the narrow two-lane road leading to the ranch.

For a time, the California Highway Patrol closed the road to clear up a small bottleneck and mess of cars created by Jackson fans and media traveling up and down.

Gregory Son, a 31-year-old musician, was among many fans who had planned to ride to the ranch to say goodbye to Jackson.

"I think he was a modern-day prophet," Son said outside Grauman's. "We kind of lost our father."

Next to him, 26-year-old Sean Vezina, wearing sunglasses and a fedora like Jackson's, stood silently. Vezina said he made his living as a Jackson impersonator, but was mourning too much to display any moves.

"It's too painful," he said. "It'll take awhile."

In the day's final development, a London woman filed a 93-page handwritten document in Los Angeles Superior Court claiming she was Jackson's secret wife and the mother of all three of his children.

In asking for all of Jackson's assets, the woman also added: "I have up to 30 children. My Father (Satan the Devil) Khalid Lucifer as he is known, gave them to us."[Edited 7/2/09 10:38am]

Q: But it must've been so disturbing to see Michael's face turn into what it turned into.
A: It's ridiculous, man! Chemical peels and all of it. And I don't understand it. But he obviously didn't want to be black.

I felt like Michael was doing something more to his skin! When Quincy said look at his kids, that really hit home. Somewhere along the line somebody taught him that black was not beautiful.

Quincy Jones just told the raw honest truth! What ever you think of yourself on the inside will manifest on the outside.

During that last apperances and recently, Michael looked like a mannequin he didn't even look real...

The message you are about to hear are not meant for transmission. Should ONLY be accessed in the privacy of your mind. Words are so intense so if you dare to listen.Take off your clothes and meet me between the lines.

Q: But it must've been so disturbing to see Michael's face turn into what it turned into.
A: It's ridiculous, man! Chemical peels and all of it. And I don't understand it. But he obviously didn't want to be black.

I felt like Michael was doing something more to his skin! When Quincy said look at his kids, that really hit home. Somewhere along the line somebody taught him that black was not beautiful.

Quincy Jones just told the raw honest truth! What ever you think of yourself on the inside will manifest on the outside.

During that last apperances and recently, Michael looked like a mannequin he didn't even look real...

MJ had Body Dysmorphic Disorder and its obvious. Quincy never took time to understand the inner pain MJ went through.

He never even thought about the fact that MJ's mental state might have been affected dramatically after he suffered such severe burns from the Pepsi accident.After that accident, that's when MJ inner demons started catching up with him